Romance of the Three Kingdoms - (Full 2 Volumes)

Author: Luo Guanzhong (Ming) / Country: Mainland China
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2006-05-01
Features: Romance of the Three Kingdoms is the pioneering work of the long, serial narrative novel in ancient China. The Three Kingdoms story was highly popular in ancient Chinese folklore. It was adapted for the stage as early as the Song and Yuan dynasties, with over 30 plays about the Three Kingdoms performed during the Jin and Yuan periods. During the Zhizhi era of the Yuan Dynasty, the Complete Illustrated Three Kingdoms was published by the Xuan family of Xin'an. In the late Yuan Dynasty and early Ming Dynasty, Luo Guanzhong synthesized folk tales, operas, and storytelling, combining historical records from Chen Shou's Records of the Three Kingdoms and Pei Songzhi's annotations, along with his own insights into society and life, to create Romance of the Three Kingdoms. The earliest surviving edition is from the Jiajing era of the Ming Dynasty, commonly known as the "Jiajing edition," and this book has 24 volumes. During the Kangxi era of the Qing Dynasty, Mao Run and Mao Zonggang father and son corrected historical inaccuracies, revised and edited the text, and transformed it into the 120-chapter edition of Romance of the Three Kingdoms that is widely used today.
Luo Guanzhong lived between 1330 and 1400, with the name Ben and the sobriquet Huahai Sanren. He was a popular fiction writer of the Ming Dynasty. His birthplace is said to be Taiyuan (now Shanxi) or Qiantang (now Hangzhou in Zhejiang), though it is uncertain. According to legend, Luo Guanzhong served as a counselor to Zhang Shicheng, a leader of the late Yuan peasant uprising. In addition to Romance of the Three Kingdoms, he also wrote other popular novels like Chronicles of Sui and Tang and plays such as The Dragon and Tiger Meeting of Zhao Taizu.
Romance of the Three Kingdoms depicts nearly a century of historical turmoil from the late Eastern Han Dynasty to the early Western Jin Dynasty. The entire work reflects the political and military struggles of the Three Kingdoms era, the interplay and transformation of various social conflicts during that time, and the major historical changes of the period. It also portrays a host of heroic figures who left a mark on history. In his handling of the Three Kingdoms history, the author shows a clear preference for the Eastern Han (Liu Bei's faction) over the Wei (Cao Cao's faction), centering the narrative on Liu Bei's group and praising its key figures while harshly condemning Cao Cao. Today, we should view the author's pro-Liu Bei, anti-Cao Cao bias dialectically. The preference for Liu Bei over Cao Cao was the mainstream tendency in folk tales, reflecting the people's hope for the revival of the Han ethnicity during Luo Guanzhong's time.
Romance of the Three Kingdoms portrays nearly 200 characters, with the most successful being Zhuge Liang, Cao Cao, Guan Yu, and Liu Bei. Zhuge Liang is the embodiment of the author's ideal "virtuous minister," embodying the high moral integrity of "dedicating oneself to the cause until death" and the ambition to restore peace and prosperity. The author also grants him supernatural abilities, such as controlling the winds and rains and making brilliant calculations. Cao Cao is a cunning and ruthless figure, whose life philosophy is "let the world betray me, but never let me betray the world." He is both a visionary and a ruthless politician and conspirator, and should not be confused with the historical Cao Cao. Guan Yu is described as "fierce and resolute" and "loyal as a mountain," but his loyalty is based on personal grievances rather than the greater good of the nation. Liu Bei is portrayed as a benevolent ruler who loves his people, respects talent, and knows how to use people wisely.
Romance of the Three Kingdoms depicts numerous battles, both large and small, with grand designs and diverse techniques, allowing readers to vividly witness the bloody scenes of war. Battles like the Battle of Guandu and the Battle of Red Cliffs are described in thrilling, ups-and-downs that leave readers on the edge of their seats. The language of the book is neither overly profound nor overly vulgar—it is concise, clear, energetic, and lively.
Romance of the Three Kingdoms sparked a wave of historical fiction writing in China, and the characters it created have become household names across the country...